Last updated: March 15, 2022
Graduation Celebration Lunch <br id="3"/>To celebrate the 3rd graders of junior high school and 6th graders of elementary school who are about to graduate, we had a graduation celebratory lunch today.
Sekihan, which is made by steaming sticky rice mixed with beans such as azuki beans and cowpeas, is often eaten during celebrations.
This is because the color red has long been believed to have the power to drive away bad things.
In addition to sekihan, we also prepared flower-shaped tofu hamburgers and lemon ice cream made with lemons harvested in Inagi City.
All of the staff at the kitchen pray from the bottom of our hearts that all of our graduates will continue to eat happily and stay healthy every day.
For our lemon ice cream, we use lemons from Inagi City that are harvested around December, with their fragrant skins finely chopped.
School lunch on March 15th
lemon ice cream
Senzanki
The local school lunch for March is Ehime Prefecture.
Ehime Prefecture in the Shikoku region is a warm region facing the Seto Inland Sea and the Uwa Sea, and is famous for seafood such as sea bream, and citrus fruits such as mandarin oranges and ponkan oranges, which it boasts the highest production volume in Japan.
Senzanki is a local dish from the Toyo region, which is famous for its chicken dishes.
It is said that it began during the Edo period when pheasants were caught in Mt. Chikami and fried.
Nowadays, chicken meat with bones is often used, but in school lunches, boneless fillets are used.
The meat is marinated in a marinade containing soy sauce, sake, ginger, garlic, etc., then coated with potato starch and fried.
School lunch on March 10th
Doll's Festival
Doll's Festival, held on March 3rd, is an annual event where girls are decorated with dolls and peach blossoms to wish for the healthy growth and happiness of girls.
The colors of the hishimochi and hinaarare offerings have meanings: green is a new bud and represents health, white is snow and represents prosperity of descendants and longevity, and red (pink) is a peach flower and represents "warding off evil spirits." I am.
Today's school lunch is a yuzu-flavored sauce made with Sawara, a fish that is in season in spring, and Hinamatsuri soup with wakame and flower-shaped kamaboko, which are also in season in spring.
Let's eat deliciously and celebrate a year of good health.
School lunch on March 3rd
Joshu Kinpira
February's local school lunch will be in Gunma Prefecture.
Gunma Prefecture is located in the northwest of Kanto and is home to rich nature and many hot springs.
Gunma Prefecture has many vegetables with high yields, such as konnyaku potatoes, green onions, cucumbers, and cabbage, and livestock farming such as cows and pigs is also active.
Joshu Kinpira is said to be a menu created to commemorate the Akagi National Athletic Meet held in Gunma Prefecture in 1981, and is a Kinpira dish made with konnyaku, a specialty of Gunma Prefecture.
School lunch on February 17th
Penne Arrabbiata <br id="3"/>Penne Arrabbiata is a dish made by topping pasta called penne with tomato sauce containing garlic and chili peppers.
Arrabbiata means "anger" in Italian, and is said to have been given this name because the spiciness of the tomato sauce, which is made with lots of chili peppers, makes people blush as if they are angry.
School lunch on February 8th
Yojiki (meatballs stew in tomato)
Yozhki is a Russian stew made with meatballs stuffed with rice and tomatoes.
The name comes from the Russian word for hedgehog because the way the rice pops out of the meatballs resembles a hedgehog.
School lunch on January 20th
Mettashiru <br id="3"/>Mettashiru is a local dish from Ishikawa Prefecture, a hearty pork soup made with root vegetables.
Sweet potato cultivation has been popular in Ishikawa Prefecture since ancient times, so this dish is characterized by its inclusion of sweet potato.
There are various theories, but it is said that the name "metta-jiru" comes from the fact that it contains a lot of ingredients, and is a soup with a ton of ingredients.
School lunch on January 14th
Opening the sake barrel
January 11th is the "Kagami-biraki" ceremony.
Kagami-biraki is an event in which kagami mochi rice cakes that were offered to the New Year deity during the New Year are eaten in the form of zoni or oshiruko (sweet red bean soup), in order to pray for good health and prosperity in the coming year.
Cutting Kagami mochi with a blade is reminiscent of seppuku, so the word "kagami biraki" was chosen, using the word "open," which also means "to open," and implies an auspicious shape that expands at the end.
School lunch on January 12th
dragging
The local school lunch for December is Hikizuri from Aichi Prefecture.
In Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture, sukiyaki is called ``Hikizuri.''
The name ``hikizuri'' comes from the fact that the meat was eaten by dragging it over a sukiyaki pot.
Sukiyaki is often made with beef, but in Aichi Prefecture, chickens such as Nagoya Cochin are popular, so chicken is used for hikizuri.
School lunch on December 16th
Potatoes from Ozora Town <br id="3"/>Ozora Town in Hokkaido and Inagi City are sister cities and have an exchange of their respective specialty vegetables and fruits.
Pears are sent from Inagi City, and freshly dug potatoes arrive from Ozora Town.
Ozora Town is a town rich in nature, famous for Lake Abashiri, sunflower fields, and Moss Pink Park.
Today's pot-au-feu was made using potatoes delivered from Ozora Town.
Potatoes arrived from Ozora Town
School lunch on December 7th
Japanese food day
November 24th is known as ``Japanese Food Day'' due to the word combination ``ii (11), nihon (2), and shoku (4)''.
Japanese cuisine is a culture centered on cuisine that has been passed down by the Japanese people since ancient times, and at its root is the idea of ``respect for nature.''
The menu is characterized by ingredients grown in the rich nature of the sea, mountains, and villages, cooking that brings out the flavor, and a menu centered on rice, which is also excellent in nutritional balance.
Today's school lunch was a Japanese menu that incorporated umami-rich soup stock, traditional seasonings such as soy sauce and miso, and mackerel and mushrooms, which are in season in autumn.
Let's think about Japanese food culture again while eating.
In addition, for three days, November 22nd, 24th (today), and 25th, new rice harvested in Nozawa Onsen Village, Nagano Prefecture, a friendship city of Inagi City, will be cooked in the rice cooking equipment of the No. 1 kitchen. (Each school will only be allocated one out of three days).
School lunch on November 24th
Imoni <br id="3"/>Imoni is a local dish of Yamagata Prefecture that is often eaten from autumn to winter, when taro is harvested.
In Yamagata Prefecture, ``Imoni-kai'' is held, where each person brings a pot and ingredients to their home or riverside, and makes and eats imoni with family and friends.It is an essential event for getting together with the citizens of the prefecture. Masu.
The seasoning varies depending on the region, such as miso and soy sauce.
The imoni for today's school lunch was seasoned with soy sauce.
School lunch on November 10th
Gojiru <br id="3"/>Gojiru is made by soaking soybeans in water and grinding them.Gojiru is made by adding gojiru to miso soup.
Since soybeans are harvested and shipped from autumn to winter, it has been eaten throughout Japan as a warming dish during the cold season.
Today's school lunch, gojiru, includes finely chopped soybeans and vegetables such as kobo, carrots, and daikon radish.
Eat gojiru to warm up your body.
School lunch on October 20th
hoki salsa sauce
October's world cuisine is Mexican.
Located in the south of the United States, its official name is the United Mexican States.
Salsa sauce is a typical Mexican sauce made by finely chopping vegetables such as tomatoes, onions, and peppers and tossing them with lemon juice and Tabasco.
School lunch on October 13th
Niitakanashi from Inagi City
Niitaka pears, which are in season from late September to mid-October, are larger than other varieties and have a very sweet flavor.
In Inagi City, where farmland is small, in order to be able to harvest high-quality pears from the limited area of the field, producers adjust the mix of fertilizer and take other measures to prevent the pears from being eaten by insects and animals. I'm growing up.
School lunch on September 30th
Karemore (chicken curry)
September's world cuisine is Samoa.
In Samoan, "kare" means "curry" and "moa" means "chicken."
In other words, "Karemore" means "chicken curry".
In Samoa, potatoes and unsweetened bananas are often eaten as staple foods, but curry is often served with rice.
Lunch on September 28th
Takao grapes produced in Inagi City <br id="3"/>Takao grapes, one of Inagi City's special products, are large seeds grown in Tokyo about 60 years ago and whose parent is Kyoho grapes. It's a pear grape.
It is shaped like a rugby ball.
It is named after Mt. Takao in Tokyo.
Although production has been decreasing year by year, we were able to serve school lunches again this year with grapes grown with care through the efforts of the farmers.
Please accept it with gratitude.
Lunch on September 2nd
pork bean stew
The Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Support Lunch in July will be from the United States.
Pork bean stew is commonly made in American homes.
It is a stew dish with lots of ingredients such as pork, beans, potatoes, and carrots.
Today's stew contains two types of beans: soybeans and red kidney beans.
Lunch on July 9th
Butadon <br id="3"/>This month's local school lunch is Hokkaido pork bowl.
Butadon is a dish made of thinly sliced pork that is grilled and seasoned with sugar and soy sauce for a sweet and spicy flavor.
In addition to pork, we also included a lot of vegetables such as cabbage, onions, and carrots in our school lunches.
School lunch on July 6th
Locally produced school lunch in Tokyo <br id="3"/>Today we will have a school lunch using ingredients related to Tokyo.
The potatoes and onions in the curry meat and potatoes were grown in Inagi City, where we live.
In addition, the komatsuna in the komatsuna with Jakooroshi sauce is a vegetable that got its name from the fact that its cultivation began near Komatsugawa, Edogawa Ward, Tokyo.
(Today's komatsuna is from Mitaka City)
Ingredients used in school lunches arrive from all over Japan, but locally produced ingredients require less time and distance to transport to the communal kitchen, so they arrive fresher.
Let's taste it and enjoy it.
The first and second photos are potatoes and onions delivered today by a farmer in the city.
The third photo shows them cutting the delivered potatoes.
The potatoes used for Nikujaga are cut into larger pieces than those used for other dishes, so instead of being cut by machine, each potato is carefully hand-cut by the chef.
First photo
2nd
3rd one
Lunch on June 21st
Carbonada (South American style tomato stew)
The Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games support lunch in June will be from Argentina.
Argentina is a country in South America where soccer is very popular.
Carbonada is a tomato-flavored stew made with lots of sweet ingredients such as onions, potatoes, pumpkin, and sweet potatoes.
The sweetness of the ingredients and the sourness of the tomatoes go well together.
In Argentina, carbonada contains rice, but in school lunches, wheat is used instead.
Chew your food well.
School lunch on June 10th
minestrone
The Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Support Lunch in May will be from Italy.
Minestrone, which means ``soup with lots of ingredients,'' is a home-cooked dish made using typical Italian ingredients such as tomatoes, garlic, and olive oil.
In addition to vegetables, it is sometimes made with beans and small pieces of pasta.
School lunch on May 27th
Tori-chan-yaki <br id="3"/>Torichan-yaki is a local dish that originated in the Minami-Hida and Okumino regions of Gifu Prefecture.
This is a dish of chicken cut into bite-sized pieces, marinated in a soy sauce or miso-based sauce, and stir-fried with plenty of vegetables such as cabbage.
Today, I'm sauteing chicken, onions, cabbage, chives, and other vegetables in a garlicky miso sauce.
School lunch on May 24th
Wakatake soup <br id="3"/>Wakatake soup is a soup made with wakame and bamboo shoots, which are in season in spring. "Waka" stands for wakame, and "take" stands for bamboo shoots.
For school lunches, we made soup stock with bonito flakes and simply seasoned it with salt and soy sauce.
School lunch on April 28th
Noppe (simmered vegetables)
Noppe is a thick stew that is eaten in Niigata Prefecture and other regions.
Boiling the taro with various ingredients such as carrots, burdock root, shiitake mushrooms, and chicken will thicken the sauce.
The name Noppe comes from the word ``Nuppei'', which means ``thick''.
School lunch on April 23rd
Inagi City Education Department School Lunch Division Tel: 042-377-8904